A total of 28,000 patients were diagnosed with cancer in Sri Lanka last year, a study by the Health Promotion Bureau revealed.

Issuing a press release, the Bureau claimed that cancer related deaths were ranked as the second most common cause of deaths last year.

The organisation also said that 18.1 million cancer patients were identified across the world last year alone. It added that this figure is predicted to rise to 29.5 million per annum within the next 20 years.